The present invention relates to the automatic launching of badminton shuttlecocks at different frequencies, trajectories and speeds to a desired direction relative to a player. More particularly, this invention relates to the simplicity and reliability for launching shuttlecocks notwithstanding the varying quality and condition of the shuttle, for purposes of recreation, training aid or shuttlecock speed testing.
A wide variety of ball throwing machines employing counter rotating wheels have been used in the past for activities such as tennis, ping pong, baseball and volley ball practice. These machines propel spherical objects or the like such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,082,350 and WO9411069. They are not suitable for propelling a non spherical object such as a shuttlecock. Although mention is made for the use in the game of badminton in these patents, an adaptation of the device for that purpose is neither shown nor a claim sought. Moreover, applying a pair of concave rotating wheels to propel a shuttlecock through a gap formed between two concave wheels is not viable due to the lack of surface contact available on a conical shape projectile such as a shuttlecock. Additionally, the mechanism for the delivery of the shuttlecock into the gap formed between the two concave wheels would require a high degree of mechanical complexity.
GB2355411 and WO9319822 disclose shuttlecock throwing apparatus which utilize compressed air to propel shuttlecocks. Such devices need some degree of mechanical complexity for loading and positioning the shuttlecock from the magazine into the shooting tube.
DE3644607, JP1227775, JP1236075, JP7163694 employ swing arms, spring loaded mechanisms or mechanical impact plates to propel the shuttlecock. These prior art machines suffer from the same limitations of operating rigidity, mechanical complexity, high manufacturing cost and relatively high operating cost.
JP9117539, FR2799133 and other prior art machines employ a hopper tube for having plural shuttles stacked on each other axially, a shuttle transfer mechanism comprising a pair of rotary bodies rotated to each other by a drive source for dropping the shuttle. At the outset these mechanisms are complicated and often fail as two or more shuttlecocks tend to stick to one another when stacked and consequently two or more shuttles will be propelled at one time. Another drawback in prior art devices is the inability to cope with lightly worn shuttles-feathers which may impede or prematurely fall into the ejecting mechanism resulting in a miss or accidental launching.
Likewise, a shuttlecock shooting machine manufactured by Sport and Teknik, Sweden, employs an external pneumatic supply and uses a hopper tube to contain stacked shuttles on top of each other. Therefore, there is a need for a device that is inexpensive to manufacture having simpler and improved means for automatically ejecting shuttlecocks in a wide range of trajectories for use in shuttlecock speed grading, recreation or as a training aid.
The basic concept of this invention employs a pair of articulated counter rotating wheels for gripping and propelling the shuttlecock nose or cap member, a shuttlecock dispenser which positions shuttlecocks led in queue and a loading mechanism which simply pushes the queue shuttlecock into the gap of the rotating wheels thereby causing contact between the shuttlecock cap and the ejecting wheels. This invention provides a highly versatile shuttlecock launcher avoiding the foregoing and other shortcomings and disadvantages of prior constructions. Accordingly, it is also the objective of the present invention to provide a launcher that is capable of simulating most of the shuttlecock trajectories experienced in the actual playing of badminton. To achieve the foregoing and other objects and in accordance with the purpose of the present invention, a shuttlecock-throwing machine is provided to permit delivery of successive shuttlecocks at different frequency, trajectory and speed in a desired direction of a player""s court and which is of relatively simplified construction for economical manufacture and minimum cost of maintenance and repair.
The foregoing and other objects and advantages of this invention will appear in the cited claims and the following description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings of a preferred embodiment.